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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Entertainment
Anita McSorley & Nia Dalton

Mum who takes down Christmas tree at 6pm on December 25 explains her touching reason

Tradition dictates that households across Ireland leave their Christmas tree up until the 'Twelfth Night' on January 5.

But one mum has told how she packs away her decorations long before then, taking everything down at exactly 6pm on Christmas Day.

Georgia Schofield, 24, went viral online last year after posting a TikTok video taking down her tree unusually early - and she will be doing the same this year.

READ MORE: People astounded after learning why Christmas is sometimes called Xmas

The mum-of-two from from Hartlepool in England says she has a touching reason for abruptly ending the festivities, despite not everyone agreeing with her.

Speaking to Mirror UK, Georgia explained: "It's my daughter's birthday on St Stephen's Day and if it was me, I'd hate the tree being up. So I try and make it as normal as possible for her special day. I've done it every year so she knows no different, and she's never requested or questioned it. If I wasn't her birthday, I would have them up for longer."

Georgia removes all traces of Christmas at 6pm on December 25 (@bruh.georgia/TikTok)

Georgia, who is a dedicated mum to three-year-old Ava and two-year-old Leo, makes up for it by preparing for Christmas extra early.

"My kids' presents are all bought and wrapped by mid-October and the tree goes up at the end of November. I like to be organised," she said.

Then she decorates the whole house for her daughter's birthday (@bruh.georgia/TikTok)

Then on December 25 at around 6pm, it's her tradition to remove all traces of Christmas, just a couple of hours after polishing off festive dinner.

She said: "We get up early and open our presents, then get ready to head to my mum's house for dinner. At 4pm we'll have a buffet and the kids are both in bed by 5.30pm. That's when I pack away all of Christmas and replace it with Ava's birthday decorations.

"Last year she had a Paw Patrol theme and she will again this year. I'll get out balloons, banners, presents and decorate the table with a cover and plates.

"We usually go to Pizza Hut for lunch and have a party buffet for tea."

Ava celebrates Christmas as usual with presents and a stocking (Georgia Schofield)

However, she said that having a child's birthday on St Stephen's Day isn't easy and takes a lot of forward-planning.

"It's a nightmare buying a birthday cake. I've ordered a personalised Paw Patrol one for this year and the baker will drop it off on Christmas Eve," Georgia said.

Then gets to celebrate her birthday the following day with cake (Georgia Schofield)

She then tries to keep it hidden until Ava's birthday, where she'll blow out her candles without a bauble in sight.

Recalling the day Ava was born, Georgia said: "She was due January 17 but my waters broke early on Christmas morning. I was fuming that I missed Christmas dinner so my mum brought it to the hospital, but it had been microwaved too many times to eat.

"It's quite hard having a birthday so close to Christmas as there's only so much you can buy, but we can't change it."

While lots of people have praised Georgia for her "wonderful" efforts to make St Stephen' Day all about Ava, others think she should keep the tree up.

Three-year-old Ava will have Paw Patrol decorations this year too (Georgia Schofield)

The viral video, which has garnered 2.6 million views, is flooded with thousands of comments from fellow parents.

"I love this, think it's really thoughtful that you bring Christmas celebrations to an end to celebrate her birthday," one person wrote.

Though another said: "Why not keep the Christmas vibe and birthday vibe both on at the same time?"

Someone else explained: "My daughter's is 29th and I take the tree down so she knows there's a difference between Xmas and her birthday."

Georgia said: "I didn't expect my TikTok to take off so much and I had a lot of mixed opinions but I focus on the positive ones."

When do you take your Christmas decorations down? Let us know in the comments.

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